Limone Piedmont, the Salt Road and its Provencal wonders

From the time of Emperor Augustus, the Salt Road has been a path for commerce between the mountain hamlet of Limone Piedmont and the Mediterranean Sea. Today trade continues in another form as visitors flock to the Maritime Alps seeking refreshment in clean mountain air and a range of recreational activities.

One of the first ski resorts in Italy, Limone is about equidistant from Turin and Nice on the Cote D’Azur. The town of about 1,300 year-round residents has long welcomed visitors, whether they were salt traders in ancient times or members of the modern jet set from the Riviera.

Limone is called the Queen of the Maritime Alps, the wild and complex alpine chain running for 38 km in its southern sections from Ventimiglia to Colle di Tenda, France.

Chalets in Limone, Piemonte

High in the Maritimes, the village sits on the border with France as a pretty little town bedecked in flowers in summer. Though internationally renowned for its winter season, it is even prettier in spring and summer when the charming chalets have their doors flung open.

“It is here that the Alps and the Mediterranean meet and mix,” wrote novelist Mario Rigoni Stern.

The beauty of the area in summer is fantastic – you can hike, mountain bike along the old Salt Road or visit a series of forts built before WWI with green stone from France that are in almost perfect condition.

In Limone you are within walking distance of the thrilling Marguareis Massif and surrounded by some of Europe’s most beautiful parks, including Mercantour National Park, the Alte Valli Pesio and Tanato Park, which have every outdoor activity you can think of. The town offers a great opportunity for hiking, climbing and mountaineering in a wild alpine landscape of breathtaking views and relaxing meadows, lights and colors. Cyclists and motorbikers are in their element here.

It is also just a short hike to the Salt Road, which from the Bronze Age (1800 BC) has been part of the Ligurian drailles that linked maritime Liguria with the upper Roya Valley. The drailles were paths that people, troops, mules, sheep and goats have followed in their travels since time immemorial.

When Emperor Augustus conquered the Ligurians, he made a route from Ventimiglia (called Albintimilium in ancient times) up to the Roya Valley and over the Col de Tende pass to Borgo San Dalmazzo.

Salt unloaded at the port of Ventimiglia traveled inland through the valley over Col de Tende and into Limone.

During Arabic occupations, people stayed inside their fortified villages, but after the Moors were chased from their bases on the Ligurian coast, trade between the interior and sea villages restarted. At the beginning of the 13th century, the Counts of Ventimiglia restored the route between Ventimiglia and Limone via the Col de Tende. By the end of the century, the Counts of Provence had the salt monopoly and maintained the route between Cuneo and the coast. The Roya Valley continued to be the main Salt Road through the 16th century.

Limone Piedmont, in the Cuneo province, is a perfect base for trekkers on the Grand Tour of the Alps (GTA), a sprawling trail that covers the entire arc of the western Alps in the Piedmont region. The overall route of the GTA forms an itinerary of some 1,000 km to make one of the world’s great trekking experiences.

Another specialty of Limone is Polenta made of grano saraceno flour.

The local cuisine is rustic, Provencal — and gorgeous.

Among specialties are les ravioles, once considered the rich entrée for weddings and other special occasions. Ingredients for 6 servings: 1.5 kilos of potatoes, 4 hectograms of Toma cheese, 2 eggs, 3 tablespoons of olive oil, 5 hectograms of flour, a pinch of salt, pepper, just enough nutmeg, butter, rosemary and a little cream. Cook the potatoes and finely, then strain the potatoes together with the Toma cheese. Arrange the strained mix in a round pattern on a work surface. Add the egg, oil, salt, pepper and nutmeg, knead well and cut the pasta into slices. Roll the slices until they resemble a breadstick measuring about 2 centimeters in diameter. Then cut the breadstick into small pieces 2 centimeters long and continue to roll it with one hand until it resembles a spindle. Cook in boiling salt water for a few minutes. Les ravioles will float to the top when they are fully cooked. Remove from the water and drain well, then quickly pan-fry them in melted butter, cream and rosemary.

Another specialty is Polenta made of grano saraceno flour that finds its origin in a festival called Abaya, which Limone celebrates on the last Sunday of every August with a costumed historical reenactment that celebrates the expulsion of the Saracens from the valley.

When you are in this area, experience the romanticism of train travel. Take “Il Treno delle Meraviglie’ that connects Cuneo with Nice. This memorable trip takes a dramatic route through Breil in the Roya valley and the perched village of Saorge, to the world’s smaller station of Airole and the ancient fortified town of Tende. The stunning scenery is made of old medieval villages and archaeological findings dating back 5000 years.